Accused killer of former Arizona State University football player to stand trial beginning Monday.

The trial for the man accused of killing former Arizona State University football player Tyrice Thompson is expected to get underway early next week, more than a year after Thompson was stabbed and killed outside a Scottsdale night club.

Jury selection began Tuesday in Maricopa County Superior Court room number 1301 as prosecutors and the attorneys defending accused killer Ian MacDonald prepared for the trial slated to begin Monday.

By the end of Thursday, the attorneys had selected the panel to serve on the murder trial.

Thompson, who was 27, was working as a bouncer at the Martini Ranch night club in Scottsdale the night of Jan. 27, 2013, when MacDonald allegedly stabbed him multiple times in the back.

MacDonald, 27, and his girlfriend, Samantha King, were kicked out of the night club around 1 a.m., according to police records. The records stated witnesses saw Thompson on top of MacDonald on the ground when King jumped on top of Thompson's back and pulled his hair.

According to a police report, police interviewed witnesses who said MacDonald confessed to the stabbing and talked about disposing of a knife he typically carried.

MacDonald's legal troubles did not end that night: Maricopa County Sheriff's deputies arrested the MacDonald at his Mesa area home in early July on suspicion of a series of criminal acts, including weapons violations, assault and animal cruelty. MacDonald, who was released from jail pending his murder trial, was held without bail following his July arrest, according to court records.

Jury selection

On Tuesday, a group of 65 potential jurors filed into the courtroom morning for their initial appearance before Superior Court Judge Roland Steinle.

The trial is expected to last only three weeks, however the court has scheduled the trial until Sept. 3 in case testimony runs long.

"Based on the number of witnesses and doing these cases a lot, I expect this to wrap up by Aug. 13," Steinle said.

By Thursday, the original group of potential jurors were combined with another and 47 people remained for attorneys to chose from.

Deputy County Attorney Laura Reckart focused on questioning potential jurors about any experience working a security job or being involved in altercations at a bar or club.

One juror stood up and said he had worked as a bouncer as a night club and was stabbed while on the job, the same thing that happened to Thompson.